You know it’s coming in. You’ve built up good momentum. You’re eating quality foods 80%+ most of your days, and you’re hitting your fitness consistently 3 to 5 times per week. Your next greatest challenge to all the behaviors and momentum you’ve built is right around the corner…the holiday season. Maybe in the past you’ve gotten very stressed around the holidays, fallen off your nutrition routine, and lost consistency with fitness and you’re worried these patterns are likely to emerge and challenge you again.

AVOIDING THE SNOWBALL EFFECT…

While the holiday season can be exciting – family gatherings, delicious foods, shared memories, and quality time with people we love – it’s very natural and normal for you to take a step back from your nutrition and fitness routine.

How far back is in your hands and your control.

The snowball effect happens when that small step back turns into a complete reversal.

HOW IT HAPPENS

At Thanksgiving, you gather with people you love and enjoy a meal together. You eat foods you don’t normally eat on a regular basis. Those tasty treats throw your taste buds into extreme sensation and pleasure seeking mode. This snowballs when indulging one day with one meal turns into indulging days or even weeks resulting in eating too much ‘joy’ food and not enough ‘quality’ food.

You are officially out of your routine.

Then Christmas is just around the corner and your stress levels are even higher. This leads to impulse or ‘stress’ eating, and you continue down this path. As exciting as Christmas is for most of us, it can also be very hectic: gifts, shopping, expectations, or worries – and so you skip the gym rather than get your daily dose of health, wellness, and endorphins.

While missing a day here or there is normal and won’t derail your progress, it’s when you fall off your normal fitness routine for extended periods of time that makes it harder to get back to it. Then when you do eventually return, you’re met with the reality that you’ve lost some of your progress.

And then comes New Years. You stay up later than normal, overeat snacks, and drink alcohol to celebrate. This combination throws off your entire daily rhythm and leaves you with more regret than excitement.

And that’s how you get the holiday snowball effect! It challenges all the positive behaviors and actions you’ve put into practice over a long period of time.

WHAT DO I DO?

The first step is to be aware. Second, you need to acknowledge. Acknowledge that your nutrition will not be perfect over Thanksgiving and Christmas and that you can fully enjoy those meals and moments with loved ones, guilt free. Acknowledge in advance that you will likely be around others who don’t share the same will, drive, discipline or goals as you do. Acknowledge that although you might be traveling or have a hectic schedule, you will remain consistent with your fitness routine.

The last and most critical step is ACTION. You take action by not letting yourself spiral out of control due to one or two holiday indulgences. You take action by committing to a set amount of days within the gym per week because you know it will lower your stress and help keep you moving closer to your goals. You take action by planning ahead – plan your schedule around your workouts – plan what healthy foods you will be eating a majority of the time – plan to get back on track with the next meal…not days later – plan ahead and commit to not letting 1 or 2 days of holiday eating make the other 30+ days a wash, leaving you further away from your ultimate goal and hindering your progress.

We know this is one of the hardest times of the year to maintain your healthy habits, but you don’t have to let it overwhelm you. Avoid those challenges by being aware of what’s ahead, acknowledging what needs to be done, and making an action plan and sticking to it. Because the alternative is letting the snowball turn into an avalanche that is difficult to recover from.